


welcome to the black parade

by athylia



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alternate Universe - Horror, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Character Death, F/M, Murder-Suicide, Mystery, Violence, is it minor or is it major character death?hmmm
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-06
Updated: 2016-06-11
Packaged: 2018-07-12 11:23:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7101163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/athylia/pseuds/athylia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Rumors have spread that everyone who hears a violin being played from the speakers will die. Now everyone is making fun of the rumors because they think it’s too ‘unrealistic’.”</p><p>“Wow,” Adrien says, still unbelieving of how this has been blown to epic proportions. “That’s so…fucked up.”</p><p>“I know right?” His friend smirks and rolls his eyes. “Well, teenagers are a bit fucked up, non?”</p><p>Wherein Lycee Françoise Dupont holds more secrets than Adrien Agreste, the new kid, or any other students would have thought. Unfortunately, some skeletons just came out of the closet in the worst possible way and ghosts aren't the only things to be scared of.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Smells like teen spirit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> wherein Adrien Agreste finally gets the chance to be in a public school and some creepy shit starts

One hand clutching the strap of his bag and the other hidden in his pocket, Adrien Agreste is possibly the epitome of nervousness right now. How did teenagers like him interact again? What was the slang they always use again? Years of homeschooling did wonders to his abilities to make friends. Thanks father, he mentally curses his father as he Mme. Bustier calls him inside.

“This is Adrien Agreste, the new student. Introduce yourself please.”

He takes in a deep breath and tries to garner in enough self-confidence. “Hello, I’m Adrien Agreste. It’s nice to meet you all.”

“Move Sabrina! Adrikins will seat here!”

Mme. Bustier sighs as Chloe all but screeches and points him to the seat in the second row. “There, you may sit beside Nino.”

“Thank you Mme.” He replies and goes to sit beside the boy.

“Hey dude, I’m Nino by the way, and don’t be nervous. You’re a week late for school but it’ll be alright,” Nino says with a grin. “So you know Chloe?”

“Adrien, but you probably already knew that,” Adrien nods. “Yeah, we’re kind of childhood friends.”

“Damn, you must be something. I don’t know how you managed to handle Chloe for that long.”

“She’s not all that bad. She’s actually really, uh—” The blond tries to defend his childhood friend but comes up with nothing, eliciting a chuckle from Nino.

“UGH! BUT MME. BUSTIER!”

“No Chloe, and that’s enough!”

“So you were saying?”  
~oOo~

Class went by faster than Adrien expected and lunch came. He is still a bit unfamiliar with the place so Nino decides to give him a tour of Lycee Francoise Dupont. The place is relatively large and definitely impressive enough. The library houses a lot of books, not as much as what they have back in his house, but certainly enough to make a bookworm cry. The facilities are top notch and remarkable. He blinks as they pass an empty corridor.

“What’s there Nino?” He asks, stopping him in his tracks.

“Oh, that’s…that’s been warded off as far as I can remember. The only room it has is the AV room but the school doesn’t really use it. I heard that they’re going to demolish it soon but Mme. Bustier is trying to convince Principal Damocles to hold off the demolition. Don’t bother yourself with it, it’s nothing special.”

“Huh, if you say so then. So nothing interesting happens there?”

“Hm?” Nino turns to him and then looks at the AV room. “Nothing really but it sure does give me the creeps. It has that whole ‘horror’ vibe and all.”

“That’s because there are rumors that the AV room is haunted. I haven’t really looked up into yet as I’m not really interested in that sort of thing,” A voice cuts in, surprising both of them. “I’m Alya by the way.”

“Did you really need to shock us in the hallway that is rumored to be haunted?” Nino asks her drily.

“I like keeping you people on your toes. Wait, where’s Mari? Mari!”

A dark haired girl huffs and runs up to the brunette. “Geez, wait up Alya. You didn’t have to hurry you know.” Her eyes fall on the blonde, triggering a blush that went unnoticed by the three.

“There’s plenty of time for a tour Nino, but for now, we eat lunch,” Alya says and drags him. “You too, Adrien. Come with us.”

“I-really? Is it alright though? I don’t want to impose.” Adrien tells her with a small smile. He still doesn’t know how this entire thing works.

“Since it’s your first day here, why don’t we introduce you to the best bakery in Paris?” Alya grins at Marinette.

“A-Alya! D-Don’t mind Alya, she’s j-just, she’s just kidding, w-we’re not the best bakery in Paris, I mean Maman and Papa are good but we’re not, I mean, it’s just that…Alya!” Marinette pouts as her best friend and Nino laugh. The pigtailed girl looks at the blond again before turning back to Alya, her face getting red by the minute.

“Don’t worry Mari, you can find your words later, but for now, lunch time.”

Nino hooks an arm around Adrien’s neck. “Dude, you have got to taste the Dupain-Cheng’s pastries. They’re absolutely delicious. And they’re really nice to boot.”

“Yeah? Let’s go then, I’m excited to taste your pastries Marinette,” He tells her with a laugh, prompting another blush to appear. “This would be like my first time to go to a real bakery and eat legit sweets though.”

“No way dude, now, Alya, you know what to do.”

“Alright! Operation: Feed Adrien 2k16 is commenced!”  
~oOo~

Even from the outside, Adrien has already smelled the sweet scent emanating from the bakery. He had never been to a real bakery before with his father being strict in his diet and being overprotective in general. He always seems to think that a mass murderer would somehow get his hands on his son, which he thinks is ridiculous. Everything in here looks delicious, he thinks and he could practically feel his mouth water and oh, are those croissants?!

“Maman, you already know Alya and Nino. This is A-Adrien, my cru—er I mean um, classmate ,” The French-Chinese says and the three of them give a little wave. “Adrien is new in my class so we decided to introduce him to the bakery.”

“H-Hello Mr. and Mrs. Dupain-Cheng.” He greets them albeit a bit nervously and offers a handshake.

“You must be Adrien! Such a polite boy! But call me Sabine instead, no need for formalities. Any friend of Marinette is in good graces to us,” Sabine says and shakes his hand. “Your father is in the back rolling the dough but he’ll be here in a few. Now go on, choose anything you like. Marinette doesn’t really bring anyone else here besides Alya. It’s nice to see her become less socially awkward.”

This triggers a snigger to erupt and Marinette to sputter. “M-Maman!”

“I’m just kidding sweetheart. I’ll leave you kids to your own devices now. Oh wait, here’s your father already. I’ll be in the back if you need me kids.”

Tom appears as if on cue and grins. “Well, who and what do we have here? It seems like my ladybug made new friends today!” With that, he ruffles her hair, making her shriek in laughter.

“Papa! You still have flour on your hands!” Marinette groans but gives her father a hug. Adrien smiles at the gesture. It must be nice to have a father like that. “And yeah, these are my friends. Alya, Nino, and Adrien.”

“Adrien?” Tom scratches his chin and furrows his eyebrows. “You mean that—“

“SOOOO! Guys this is my Papa!”

“Nice to meet you Mr. Dupain-Cheng.” The blond greets the larger man as polite as he could and looking a bit too stiff.

A large hand pats him on the back and a laugh makes its way out of the older man’s mouth. “There’s no need to be stiff around us boy. Call me Tom. Learn from Alya and Nino, they’re practically here every other day.”

“Oh you know how we love us some pastries.” Nino replies while eyeing some macarons.

“This is Adrien’s first trip to a bakery by the way so only we decided to bring him to the best bakery in Paris.”

Tom laughs again, his voice large voice booming but warm and not intimidating. “Well, the customer is always right. You know what kids, since the customer is always right, get anything you like, it’s on the house.”

“Really?! Thanks Tom!” Nino practically races towards the macarons as he says it.

“And you son, you need more food in your body. You’re so skinny,” Tom admonishes him with a smile. “Enjoy yourselves kids.”

“See, told you her parents are really cool,” Nino tells him while grabbing some macaroms. “Take your pick, lunch is going to end in a few ten minutes or so.”

While walking back towards Lycee, Adrien couldn’t help but gaze at Marinette. The girl sure is lucky to have a warm family. He doesn’t even know if he’s allowed to have friends over. If he ever did invite friends over, surely his father would only scold him and scare them off. The thought brings a heavy weight in his heart and reminds him how difficult it would be to be like Nino, Marinette, and Alya. How it would take some time before he would be able to fall into their seamless and smooth way of conversing and joking. Nevertheless, he'll take advantage of this to improve his social skills, he decides.

“Your parents are really nice Marinette,” he says with a small smile. “But wouldn’t it be bad for your business if they just gave us free stuffs?”

Marinette looks at him owlishly and the tips of her ears turn red again. “I-It’s, I-It’s alright actually, I mean Maman and Papa don’t mind and the bakery is just fine, don’t worry A-Adrien, and we’ve got plenty of sweets in stock and at the end of the day not everything is sold, but that doesn’t mean we’re doing bad, I mean, yeah, yes, that!”

Adrien watches the girl rambles on cutely and grins at her. He doesn’t know what exactly about him makes her so nervous but now that he has the chance to scrutinize her up close, he could see that she seems a bit familiar. “Hey Marinette?”

“Yeah?”

“Have we met before?” The question stops her in her tracks. “I mean, you look somewhat familiar but I just can’t put my finger on it.”

“I…” Her eyes are blown wide as if she is shocked that she seems familiar to him. Suddenly, the bell rings and saves her from answering. “I’m sorry Adrien, it’s time to go back to class bye!”

He blinks in confusion as he watches the girl practically sprint towards class. He bites into his croissant and shrugs. This must be one of those women only things that Nathalie told me.

~oOo~  
“But girl! Isn’t that what you want? To get closer to Adrien?”

Marinette paces around her room and then flops onto her bed with a groan. “Yes Alya but around him I just can’t seem to say a straight and understandable word! I get so tongue tied because he always stares straight at me when talking to me with those beautiful green eyes and the way his hair shines—“

“I’m gonna have to cut you off right there darling. I’ve heard enough of this tirade of yours about him I’ve practically got all of those memorized. Anyway, back to the problem, WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL HIM?”

“Because! I don’t think he even remembers me at all! Maybe he’ll think I’m some psycho faker and then I’ll forever ruin his trust and we’ll never talk again!”

“Mari, I doubt that Adrien will shun you for life just because of that. He’s nice and kind if you haven’t noticed. A bit socially awkward but hey, guess what? You’re a bit socially awkward too so why don’t you two become socially awkward together?”

“Alya,” Marinette huffs and hugs her pillow. “It’s just that, it has been a long time since we last met and I don’t think he can still remember me. Sure I look familiar to him but other than that, I’m just his classmate in his eyes. Does he still remember the 10 year old girl he played with in China during his vacation?”

She hears Alya coo from the other side of the phone. “I’m not sure if he will but it’s worth a try don’t you think? So that you can have something to bond over with Adrien?”

“I can only hope that you’re right Alya,” She then glances at the wall clock in her room. “Oh shit, I need to go to sleep now or else I’ll arrive to class late again.”

“You do that girl, goodnight Mari.”

“Night Alya.”

She places her phone on the desk near her bed and sighs. It certainly surprised her when she saw Adrien Agreste join her class a while ago. He was the one who translated what her relatives wanted to tell her when they visited them in China. Thanks to him, she didn’t feel out of place that day. Unfortunately, he had to leave immediately and after that day, she never found him again. I wonder if he still has the paper crane that I gave him, she thinks with a smile before fall asleep.

~oOo~

A few weeks pass by normally. And by normally, it means that Adrien has not even mentioned or asked the question again. Marinette couldn’t casually tell him hey, I’m that girl you met back then in China by the way, you know, the one you helped? By the way, I totally have a crush on you. Nope, nope, that would scare him off, she just knows it. He doesn't need to see her make a fool out of herself in front of him again. Marinette is certain she has done that enough.

“Girl, I’m not seeing any action here,” Alya says as they fix their things and get ready to go home. “What happened to what you promised?”

Marinette lifts a finger and turns to her. “First of all, I made no such promises. Second, there is just no opening for such conversations with him. Third, well, there is no third, that’s it. I swear I’m getting better at talking to him without stuttering or anything like that. It’s just that, what reason do I need to bring that up to him Alya?”

“Marinette…”

“I promise I’ll tell him once it comes up. It’s not even that important for him to know anyway,” Marinette tells her and curses upon noticing something. “Shit, I forgot to return this book. I’ll return this quickly, I promise!”

“Hey wait! Mari!” Alya sighs as she watches her best friend run off. “Geez, that klutz, she forgot her card!”

“Hey, Alya, you and Marinette are still here?” Adrien asks as he enters the classroom.

“Yeah, we had to talk about something. How about you? Why are you still here though? Class is over."

“I forgot my bag, I was supposed to go to the library anyway.” He points to the bag in the seat in front of her before picking it up.

Alya’s eyes gleam and a grin appears on her mouth. “Is that so Adrien? Do you mind giving this to Marinette though? She wanted to return a book but she forgot her card.”

“Oh sure, bye Alya!”

~oOo~

Marinette bites her lip as she sprints even faster to reach the library on time. The library closes almost at the same time as the time their classes are dismissed. She wishes that she is luckier this time because having another overdue book would not do well for her reputation in the library. She doesn’t really want to be on the receiving end of the librarian’s stink eye.  
But as she readies herself to turn to a corner, her eyes catch sight of a person entering the hallway leading to the AV room. Strange, no one really uses that hallway, she muses. However, as she steps in front of the hallway leading to the AV room, she couldn’t help but feel a chill run up her spine. As much as she wants to run to the library, it’s like her feet is rooted here. The chill runs up her legs and arms, making the hairs on them stand up. The chill has that distinct feeling, it’s like…

“Like a terrible violin…” she whispers and clasps her hands together.

“Marinette!” A voice shouts, making it echo in the empty hallway and causing her to fall.

“MON DIEU!” She groans and places a hand on her chest. “You’re going to give me a heart attack here Adrien!”

The boy even has the gall to laugh at her, making her puff her cheeks in annoyance. “Sorry Mari, you forgot your library card by the way. Alya sent me here.”

“Alya, of course,” she grumbles and tries to ignore the way her cheeks are flushing and tries not to stutter in front of this wonderful boy. “I might have to return this tomorrow though. It’s already past the library hours. How long was I standing there anyway?”

“I don’t know? I actually arrived only to see you staring off into nothing. But now that you mentioned it, it's already past library hours,” Adrien replies and offers a hand. “Let’s go Mari.”

She bites the inside of her cheek as she takes his hand. This boy is going to be the death of her. However, she can't shake off the chill in her spine when he mentioned that it was already past library hours. She could have sworn that she left the classroom earlier just to return this book. She falls into steps with Adrien and doesn't even look back on the hallway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AO3 is so confusiing. So this is a bit based on one of the episodes of thirTEEN terrors, i'll give you a hint on the upcoming chapters if you managed to guess which one it is. Don't be fooled with this chapter. Yes it will have character deaths. It's been written in the tags. Enjoy!


	2. this is gospel for the fallen ones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gabriel and Adrien fight. Rumors about the AV rooom spread. The streets of Paris become dangerous during the dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> God, this chapter frustrated the hell out of me. At first I wanted to make this long but then I remembered I only had 2 months worth of free time for writing and I don’t think that’s nearly enough lol. But enjoyyy

 

 “Adrien,” Natalie says as she enters his room. “Your father would like to talk to you.”

Adrien sighs and follows his father’s assistant, wondering what the man could want from him now. He really hopes that this wouldn’t be the same conversation again. For the last few days, his father and he have been arguing over the same damned thing. Hell, he didn’t even know that his father has that persistent side of him until he started pestering him over going to public school. He knows that despite being distant and emotionally unavailable, his father only wanted the best for his sake.

 _I’ll be damned though if he thinks that keeping me away from society and socializing with people my age is the ‘best’ for me_ , he fumes as they reach his father’s office.

“Adrien, come in.” His father tells him.

“Father,” Adrien greets him stiffly. “Is there something you need from me?”

“How has school been treating you?” Gabriel asks as he leans back in his chair. “You _have_ been managing your schedule well, haven’t you?”

If he were to be honest, Adrien would tell him about how there seems to be a sudden influx of photoshoots in his schedule. Back then, before he went to school, he could easily handle all of those and maybe still have some time for relaxing left. But that was because he was home schooled. Now, he can slowly feel the difficulty of balancing school, job, and social life. But of course Adrien would not tell him that. That would be like admitting to his father that going to public school is a burden.

“Yes father,” he smoothly lies. “Everything is fine.”

Gabriel raises an eyebrow at him. “But your latest photographer told me how stressed you look. Are you sure going to public school is fine with you?”

 _Since when do you care for me anyway?_ He bitterly thinks but still answers his question. “I am fine father. Now if you will excuse me, I still have homework that needs to be done.”

“Adrien, there are better and more exclusive schools in Paris that can coordinate with your schedule as a model,” Gabriel says, making Adrien resist the urge to roll his eyes. If this is his father’s way of being subtle then he isn’t being very good. “Your fellow model, Felix, studies there.”

“Father, I am going fine in Lycee Francoise Dupont. I have already made a few friends there. I do _not_ want to transfer, please.”

“I told you that I will allow you to go to public school. But there are much better Lycees in Paris than Francoise Dupont. Francoise Dupont doesn’t have the best security for one. You are a model Adrien, a public figure, remember that.”

He does his best not to rip his hair out in frustration. “ _I know_ father, is that not the reason why you enrolled me in self defence classes and fencing? So I could protect myself?”

“Yes, but Dupont does not really have a clean reputation. There are…rumors of it having students that died in its grounds. Do you really want to study there?”

“It doesn’t matter to me. The past is past. Not everything is bound to happen again.”

“I’m only doing this because I want the best for you.” Adrien’s mouth twitch downwards as he hears the same damned words again.

“If you really wanted the best for me, you would know that studying there makes me happy and that my happiness should be your priority,” he retorts, slowly losing the calm façade he tries so hard to put up. “You should know that whatever rumors you hear about the lycee I am in right now are just rumors. You should know that making friends is difficult enough for me so transferring me to another school would ruin _everything_.”

“Adrien…”

His voice cracks a bit and he could feel tears seeping into the corners of his eyes. “If that will be all father, I will return to my room now. I still have school tomorrow.”

He could hear Nathalie calling him but he pays it no mind. He blocks out his father’s voice, Nathalie’s voice, and everyone else’s voice. He’s just so damn tired. Adrien slips into his bedroom and slams his door shut, a way that practically shouts to everyone in the mansion to leave him alone. He screams into his pillows after flopping into his bed, ignoring the way his tears are soaking them.

He blindly reaches for his phone and texts Nino. He only hopes that Nino is willing to listen to him right now.

_hey, you still awake?- A_

Ten minutes pass by and Nino still doesn’t reply. He heaves a disappointed sigh and almost puts his phone back in the desk near his bed when his phone vibrates.

 _yeah, did you need something Adrien? :) –Marinette_. He blinks in surprise and finds that his last text was actually sent to Marinette instead.

_ah, it’s nothing, I accidentally sent it to you instead of Nino. Don’t worry, sorry for bothering you- A_

_First of all, if there is nothing wrong, you wouldn’t have texted Nino at this time of the night. But I suppose it’s not my place to interfere. But I’m always willing to lend an ear or a hand Adrien :D -Marinette_

This girl’s kindness astounds him. First she welcomes him warmly, and now, she is willing to lend an ear to the guy she met almost a month ago? He could feel a smile tugging on his lips because he knows that it is exactly like Marinette to extend her hand to anyone.

_I…are you sure it’s alright? –A_

_What are friends are for right? –Marinette_

Should he do it? Should he tell her all of this mess about his life? Should he open his heart to her?

_It’s just family drama Mari, nothing I’m not used to –A_

_D: but Adrien, you’re NOT supposed to get used to it. I might not personally know what’s happening right now in your life but one thing I’m sure of is that you’re not supposed to get used to anything that makes you upset : < -Marinette_

He laughs a little at this. Trust Marinette to get all protective over her friends. _It’s nothing I can handle. But enough about me. How about you? How are you feeling though? –A_

_I’ll pretend that what you did was not a blatant topic switch -Marinette_

_Fine, but terribly in need of cafseine because tbis paper won’t do itselg -Marinette_

_Oh wow, I can see that through your texts. They’re getting a bit less readable and more ‘in paper mode’ obvious lol –A_

_U r so luvky to have 25/7 coffee, my Maman practicali band me from them after th e whole cafein oberload piasco –Marinette_

_Marinette? –A_

_? –Marinette_

_On a scale of 1-10 how sleepy are you right now? –A_

_9000 but 9000 wont jhelp me write this paper I’m cramming jfc why do they give us paper its ben omly like 1 motnhs since lyee started –Marinette_

_I am so screenshotting this and sending it to Alya lol –A_

_No need, als has like 100000 op dose –Marinete_

_But don’t take too much coffee okay? I’ve heard that someone already died because of lack of sleep and too much coffee D: -A_

_Glaf 2 no u care hahaha –Marinette_

_Ofc I care Mari –A_

_I care 4 u 2 and I hope u feel better about ur father –Marinette_

His heart skips a beat and tries to scroll through their conversations, finding where he has mentioned his father. He frowns when he finds none. His fingers tremble but he manages to send her the text.

_How did you know? I didn’t even tell you a single clue? –A_

_1 st of all, u mentoned back then dat ur father only allowed u pubcli school this year so yah I drawn drew my concludions from der lol –Marinette_

_You text like a drunk hahaha anyway. You’re awfully observant –A_

_Are u mad at me? D: -Marinette_

_Non, never Mari :) I’m actually a bit…glad –A_

_Nice to noadmkasdmaldadaksdm (…) –Marinette_

He laughs out loud as he sees the next pages full of random letters. The poor girl must have smashed her face into the keypad. His own paper rests in his desk. He has done his earlier to give leeway to his photoshoots and other assignments.

_Hahaha goodnight Mari ;) –A_

_Shit why did I send a wink emoticon?_ He thinks as he nervously sweats. Would she be offended? Marinette doesn’t look like the type of girl to be offended by an emoticon. But then again, how well does he know her anyway? He groans and buries his face into the pillow. The heavy feeling in his chest subsided a while ago while watching the girl’s text antics.

“Night Mari.” He whispers and places his phone on the desk near his bed before closing his eyes and falling asleep.

~

“Ugh, Alya,” a voice weakly moans to the redhead’s left. “I want to sleep please.  I want coffee and sleep. And a good grade for this fucking paper.”

Alya pats her bestfriend on the back. “Don’t we all? Now come here before Mme. Bustier arrives.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She grumbles out but through some stroke of bad luck, she manages to slip on the stairs leading to her seat in the last minute. _This is not my day_ , she irritably muses.

She closes her eyes and tries to anticipate the impact when hands grab her by the waist and pull her up. “Woah there, be careful Mari.”

“Oh, hey A-Adrien,” she mentally reprimands herself for letting that one stutter slip out. “My clumsiness seems to be amplified today with me not having sleep and coffee.”

“Judging by the texts you sent me a while ago, I’d say that I believe you.” He says and couldn’t help but allow a grin to spread in his face upon seeing her turn red.

“What is he talking about Mari?” He hears Alya ask her from behind them.

“Nothing Alya.” She squeaks, eliciting a chuckle from him. Nino looks at him curious, wondering what could have possibly happened between the two to make them act like this.

“Good morning class. Now, we shall continue where we left, the Renaissance period,” Mme. Bustier says as she enters the classroom but pauses upon hearing a violin play. “Do you think that this is a joke class?”

Everyone looks at each other, confused. Adrien turns to Nino for answers but then Mme. Bustier snaps at them, prompting everyone to go silent. Marinette, Sabrina, Mylene, Ivan, and Rose seems to be puzzled as well as to why Mme. Bustier is acting that way. _Looks like I’m not the only one out of the loop_ , he thinks as Mme. Bustier’s face turn red in frustration.

“Do _not_ treat this as a joke.  Such rumours can ruin the school’s reputation. Stop spreading it. Now, if no one will admit, everyone _will_ be sent to the principal’s office.” She threatens with a stern look but falters for a second when the violin plays again.

“Maybe it _is_ the curse Mme. Bustier.” Kim pipes in from the back.

Max hisses at him at his side. “Kim now is not the time for jokes.”

“Curse? What curse?” Mme. Bustier says, almost hysterically. “There are no curses or such things at this school! Stop this nonsense!”

“Yeah, besides, it’s not even being played on the speakers so I doubt that it’s the curse.” Alix says with a shrug.

“What curse are they talking about?” Adrien whispers to Nino.

“Don’t you know about the rumours dude?”

“What rumours?”

“Well it’s that—“

“Ms. Bourgeois!”

From the other side of the classroom, he could see Chloe fumbling for something in her bag, which gains the attention of their teacher. “Ms. Bourgeois, what are you doing? Is that your phone that is making the sound?”

“Of course not Mme. Bustier!” Chloe tries to lie but her phone ends up on the floor, still playing the music.

“What were you saying Ms. Bourgeois?” She asks with a brow raised. “Go to the principal’s office, _now._ ”

“You can’t do that!” Chloe shrieks, making them wince at the shrill sound.

“Last I remember, I’m your teacher and you’re just the student. Inside these four walls, I am the authority. So don’t test my patience, _now_.”

Chloe huffs and grabs her bag before leaving the room and slamming the door with a loud bang. Sabrina tries to follow her but the teacher cuts them off with a glare. Nino and Alya exchange looks before nodding. Adrien looks back and sees that Marinette is just as lost as him.

“Now, let this be a lesson to all of you,” she says, her voice strict and reprimanding. “Do not spread vile rumours. It will not only affect the lycee but also its students, which by the way are all of you. What would happen if you apply for a job one day and your employers see that you studied at Lycee Francoise Dupont, the school infamous for the curse rumours? That would reduce your chances of being hired. Reputation is not everything but it is definitely something. Trust me. Now, take out your essays and pass them.”

A collective groan emits from the class as they all take out their papers. Adrien sends a smile to Marinette who smiles back shyly.

~

“What was the deal with Mme. Bustier anyway Nino?” Adrien asks and then takes a bite out of his sandwich.

“I guess you haven’t heard of the rumours then?”

“My father mentioned something about that during our…argument but I bluffed my way to rebut him. But sure tell me about it.”

Nino rubs his chin and contemplates for a few seconds before sighing and placing his own food on the table. “Well, it goes a little like this. It’s that rumour slash myth that Alya told you when I toured you here almost a month ago. Remember? When you just entered Lycee?”

Adrien scrunches his nose and tries to remember what particular room Nino is talking about. His eyes widen and he snaps his finger when it finally comes back to him. “You mean that AV room? That rumour?”

“Exactly, dude. According to the rumours, it is haunted by the ghost of the girl that died there back then. But that’s not all. I was pretty shocked when I found out that there was more to the rumour that what we first knew. From what I remember, which is not much, the girl there died because she was locked in as a punishment for playing the violin. After that, rumours spread that everyone who hears a violin being played from the speakers will die. Now everyone is making fun of the rumours because they think it’s too ‘unrealistic’.” Nino explains with a grim smile.

“Wow,” Adrien says, still unbelieving of how this has been blown to epic proportions. “That’s so…fucked up.”

“I know right?” His friend smirks and rolls his eyes. “Well, teenagers are a bit fucked up, non?”

“Ah but rumours are just rumors, non?” Alya interrupts them, Marinette behind her, and the two of them sit across them. “This is all getting way out of hand though. No matter how ridiculous the rumours might seem to everyone, they shouldn’t mock the AV room.”

“Alya, you investigated again didn’t you?”asks Marinette who is answered with an excited nod.

“Of course Mari, with such a thing spreading in school, don’t you think I should take advantage of it?”

Marinette frowns after sipping her juice. “Didn’t you just say that they shouldn’t mock the AV room?”

“Oh but Mari, I’m not going to do that. I just want to know more about the rumours. Besides, don’t you think that it would be much better if I do an article about this to inform the students in lycee about it?” Alya replies. “Anyway, as I was saying, it seems like the ‘girl died in AV room’ part is, at least according to my sources, true. The only name I was able to find was Lillian. I can’t find her surname in any records of the school though.”

“Well, the school has only been established for 15 years or so. Compared to other lycees, ours is practically still a baby,” Marinette tells her. “But isn’t it weird though, that our lycee is fairly new but already has a strong reputation?”

“That is weird,” Alya nods in agreement. “I wish I could get my hands on some of the school records though.”

“Alya! You’ll get in trouble for that!”

Then, Alya’s phone produces a ping, which draws the attention of the three other occupants. “Sorry guys, looks like I have to leave early. I have a meeting with a member of the newspaper club. Bye!”

“Sure, I’ll see you later in class Alya.” Marinette replies and sighs when the girl is out of their sight.

“You okay Marinette?” Adrien asks worriedly.

The girl shifts in her seat and looks up at the boy with green eyes. She wills herself not to blush under his stare. “It’s just that…whenever Alya gets interested into something, she doesn’t hold back. I’m really worried for her because sometimes she doesn’t know when to stop.”

“I’m sure Alya will be fine Mari.” Nino reassures her with a smile.

Adrien sends her a smile of his own and places a hand on her shoulder. “This is Alya we’re talking about remember? Like Nino said, she will be fine Mari. Besides, if things get ugly, we’ll be there for Alya right.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Marinette clenches her fist and nods. “You’re right guys. Thank you.”

“No problem.” They reply.

Silence erupts between the three of them. The only thing they could hear right now is the noise of the students in the cafeteria. Adrien wonders if he should tell them about the argument he had with his father last night. Now that he knows that what his father is telling him is true, he is afraid that his father might reopen their argument again but this time, he’ll have the leverage against him.

“Guys, please don’t tell to others what Alya knew okay?” He says, his eyes looking at anywhere but them.

“Okay but what’s the deal Adrien? Are _you_ okay?” Marinette asks him this time. Nino looks at him worry clear in his eyes.

“You know about what I told you last night in our texts?” The blonde says, making Nino raise his eyebrows at the revelation. “My father was worried about the rumours of about someone dying in the campus. Now that Alya told us that that is true, father would use that to strengthen his claims.”

Nino and Marinette exchange glances anxiously when they notice how distraught Adrien seems. The former clears his throat and places a hand on the blonde’s shoulder.  “Don’t worry Adrien, we’ll try to keep this under wraps as much as possible. But why didn’t you tell any of us about this? We could have helped you.”

“So that’s what was bothering you last night,” the pigtailed girl says. “I said this once and I’ll say it again, I’m always willing to lend an ear or a hand Adrien.”

“We can talk to your father for you Adrien—“

“You don’t understand how my father works Nino,” he cuts him off. “He’ll be ruthless to you. Trust me. I’ll handle him, but thank you guys.”

Marinette looks a bit hesitant to let the topic go but for Adrien’s sake, she does. “If you say so Adrien.”

“Again, thank you guys,” the blonde tells them with a grateful smile. “I don’t really know what to do without you.”

“Well, enough of this drama, lunch will be over in a few minutes anyway,” Nino remarks as he looks at his phone. The three of them stand up and start making their way out the courtyard. “We should head back now, Mme. Mendeleiv doesn’t really like it when her students are late

“Oh _mon dieu_ , Mme. Mendeleiv is  next! I’m so gonna bomb that quiz,” Marinette cries out and sulks all the way to her classroom. Most of their classmates are already there waiting for their teacher to arrive and chatting to pass time. She frowns when she notices that the Alya’s seat is still unoccupied. “Alya still hasn’t arrived?”

“She’s probably on her way now. Don’t worry about it Marinette.” Adrien assures her and takes his seat in front of her.

“But Mme. Mendeleiv is going to arrive any minute now—“

As if on cue, the doors slam open, revealing their physics teacher. “Cut down the chatter and prepare yourselves.  We will have a quiz just as I said before moving on to the next topic.”

Marinette looks at the door, which Mme. Mendeleiv locks, one last time before paying attention to the teacher in front of her. _Alya, please don’t let your curiosity get the best of you this time._

Then the rain pours.

~

Marinette huffs as she patiently waits for the rain to stop. Of course it would rain on the day she forgets to bring her umbrella. She couldn’t just make a run for it either. The rain is pouring too heavily for her to hope not to get wet. Besides, with her luck, she’s bound to slip and fall into a puddle if ever she runs. She couldn’t ask her Papa to pick her up either, her cellphone isn’t picking up any signal at all and she’s sure that the bakery is filled with customers wanting warm, toasty pastries and hot chocolate.

Due to her internal monologue, she fails to see the blonde approach her from behind. Adrien blinks when Marinette still seems oblivious to his presence and clears his throat to attract her attention.

“A-Adrien! I didn’t see you there!” She yelps, surprised. “I-I h-hate you so m-much right now!”

“I thought we were over the whole stuttering thing a week ago.” He teases her, his smile turning a bit devious. They had talked over why she seemed to be shy around him a week ago. He is rather thankful that he did, lest Marinette would still be stuttering whenever talking to him. He supposes that being a model and the son of the fashion designer she admires _is_ a tad intimidating.

“I _am_ ,” she huffs and glares at him playfully. “I was just scared. What do you expect actually? I mean, with the rumours and whatnot and also with this eerie atmosphere, it’s like they’re trying to recreate B grade horror movie.”

“What’s stopping you from going home then?”

“It’s this stupid rain. Of course it would pour on the day I forget to bring my umbrella.”

“Well then, would you like to have my umbrella then?” he asks her, brings his umbrella out of his bag, opens it, and hands it to her.

Marinette couldn’t help but be astounded at the kindness of this boy. Her eyes widen a bit and her mouth slightly opens as she stares at the umbrella in his hand and back at his green eyes. Adrien just smiles and stares back at her expectantly. He doesn’t seem to even be a bit bothered with the rain pouring on him. She raises her hand, fingers twitching, and takes a hold of the umbrella.

“I just uh, want to thank you, really,” he rubs the back of his neck, a telltale sign of his nervousness. “You were there for me last night and actually, you just seem to be _there_. Especially during the times I needed someone, you were there. I’ve never had friends before to be honest. I’ve been homeschooled all my life and I had to beg my father to go to public school for my lycee. So, I’m not really sure how all of this works…”

She blinks when he trails off. “Adrien?”

“But I’m glad one of my first ones are you Marinette.” He suddenly says, after a full minute of silence, catching her off guard.

He sends her one last smile before making his way to where Gorilla is waiting for him. He is only a few steps away from here when he hears Marinette shout his name. “There’s plenty of space of space for us under this umbrella you dummy!”

“Marinette, wait, pfft,” he stifles a laugh when the umbrella closes up on her. “Here let me help you.”

“Seriously?” she groans as Adrien sidles up next to her and holds the umbrella for her. “The world is out to get me. And Agreste, why are you _so tall_ anyway?”

“One of the perks of having good genes,” he winks at her and grins upon noticing the slight blush that appears on her face. “Since you went out of your way to help me, my lady, why don’t I escort you home instead?”

“Don’t worry it’s okay Adrien, besides, I don’t think your driver would appreciate you being delayed any further.” She assures him as he enters the car.

“Are you sure my lady?”

 _Goodness gracious_ , she thinks upon hearing his pet name for her, _is he dense or something_? “Yes I’m sure Adrien, now go, don’t you have a photoshoot or something to go to?”

He laughs and closes the door but rolls the window down. “Fine, fine, bye Mari.”

“Bye Adrien,” she waves back with a smile and watches the limo as it turns on the next corner. She looks inside her bag and frowns upon noticing that her notebook is missing. “ _Merde_ , where is my notebook? I need to finish those sketches if I want to pass something for his summer program.”

She contemplates for a second on whether she should find her notebook inside the class or just go home and retrieve it tomorrow morning. She bites her lip and takes a look at the lycee, which looks very ominous with the rain and dark atmosphere.

“Ugh, fine!”

~

“Gorilla, why did we stop?” Adrien asks as the car suddenly halts, almost throwing him to the front but he manages to hold on just in time.

Gorilla knits his brows and sends the blonde model a look that practically says ‘stay here’ before leaving the car. Adrien groans and slumps in his seat. The downpour fogs up the glass from the outside, making it near impossible to see anything but a few red and blue blinking lights.

He plays with the app on his phone to pass time when Gorilla suddenly enters the limo again but this time hurriedly. He tries to open the windows but Roger steps in front of him and shakes his head.

“Roger? What’s wrong?”

“Adrien, you better get out of here. The murderer was last seen here and his victim’s body is still here. Apparently, the victim is still alive so the murderer failed. He might still be lurking around here somewhere so it will be better if you go now.” Roger explains before nodding at Gorilla. The blond model couldn’t do much but just stare in shock as Gorilla drives them away from the place.

“Wait Gorilla!” He yells when he finally gathers his bearings. “We have to go back to Mari! She walks that way and with this rain, something might happen to her.”

Gorilla seems to hesitate a bit, which leads to Adrien pulling out the big guns. He fakes a sigh and bites his lip in an attempt to look upset. He puts in the puppy eyes for better effect too. “Please?”

When the large man nods, he can’t help but to grin and yell out a thank you and is that a smile he’s seeing? He fiddles nervously with the seat as they drive back to Lycee Francoise Dupont. He has sent her five texts, all asking where she is and if she is fine but she has not replied to a single one. It does not help dissipate his nervousness. He knows that she is fast and athletic because of her gym class performance but that does not guarantee her survival in case she has a run-in with the murderer.

“Bad thoughts Adrien, bad thoughts,” he chastises himself for even thinking of such a thing. “Please answer just _one_ text Marinette— _FINALLY!”_

 _Still here in lycee, looking for my notebook : <—_Marinette

“I don’t know whether I should be relieved or not over the fact that Marinette is still in lycee,” he says before typing out a reply. “But then again, anything is better than her walking back home when a murderer is still loose.”

Apparently, the thought of someone his age roaming Paris in this weather and hour is also discomforting to Gorilla, which made him drive faster to lycee. Adrien sends a grateful smile to his driver before running out into the rain and off to find the girl.

 _Texted using someone’s phone, empty batt, im in library- marinette_ –unknown number

The text makes him stop in his tracks and his heart to beat faster. Should he be scared of the eerie text or not is what he is thinking right now. But then again, it is possible that she resorted to using someone else’s phone to text him because her phone went off. However, for safety measures, he decides to call Marinette’s real phone.

The longer it rings, more shivers run up his spine and more goose bumps prickle his skin. _It’s just the cold_ , he tells himself after the fifth ring. _Come one Mari, pick it up_. He has never wanted to leave a place so desperately before, this is the courtyard, he tells himself. He has been here lots of times and nothing weird happens here, he tries to convince himself. He would have believed his own words.

He _would_ believe those if it weren’t for the fact that lycee seems so ominous during this hour and the dark skies and heavy rain are not helping lessen the dark and scary atmosphere. The hairs in his forearms stand up again and he immediately wraps his arms around himself as a response. As much as he wants to just wait for her on the steps, he can’t and won’t. First, the rain is now pouring even harder than before and he has no umbrella or whatsoever with him right now. Nathalie and his father would not appreciate it if he catches a cold no matter how tempting a break from modelling is right now.

Secondly, with all those nasty rumours spreading in lycee, some asshole is bound to take advantage of it to make fun of some poor soul. He doesn’t want Marinette to be that poor soul so he wants to be here in case she gets into trouble with something.

His eyes widen and a grin emerges when the girl finally answers his call. “Hello Mari? Where are you? I’m here in lycee, something bad happened on the street you usually walk on so I decided to come back for you.” He _knew it_. The unknown number was merely trying to mimic his friend.

“…” He frowns upon hearing only static and the rain.

“Mari…?” He says, his voice now a bit hesitant when the person from the other line does not say anything.

“……h—“

“Adrien?” He gasps and almost drops his phone in surprise. He turns around and sees the said girl with a worried look and another woman behind her. “What are you doing here?”

“What am I doing here? What are _you_ doing here? Didn’t I text you a while ago? About the situation?”

Marinette stares at him as if he were a talking, flying stuff toy. “What do you mean? The only text I was able to get from you was that you were going back to lycee. After that my phone died.”

“Yeah, that’s the only reason Marinette here is still insisting on staying in this creepy place,” the woman from behind her chimes in with a sweet smile. “I’m Tikki by the way, I’m a family friend. Mari, now that he’s here, why don’t we all go?”

“Sure, thanks for accompanying me here Tikki.”

“Wait, wait,” Adrien cuts them off and catches up to the two women, who are now at the entrance. “What do you mean by your phone is dead? I’m pretty sure it’s still alive. I mean, isn’t your battery still alive?”

The girl shakes her head, her pigtails whipping her face. “No, when I said dead, I meant _literally, permanently_ , dead. Like _dead, dead_. I dropped it in a large puddle somewhere near here and I tried to open it. Tikki here told me that there’s no saving my phone so we left it there. It might not be the best idea but at least I read your text so we were able to rush back here.”

“Is that so?...” he trails off, clearly perturbed at the whole situation. If that wasn’t Marinette. Then who the fuck was the one that replied to him and answered his call? He tries to push it in the back of his mind as he opens the door to the two ladies. “Let me escort you home then.”

“Oh, no worries, I’ll catch the subway, I still have to drop by on something for my work.” Tikki replies with a smile before shooing the girl in and waving at them. Marinette doesn’t seem to be alright with her decisions judging by the frown she is sporting.

“Tikki…you said it yourself. There is a dangerous and mass murderer on the loose, it will be safer that way. You can stay at the bakery, Maman and Papa wouldn’t mind.” Marinette says.

“Don’t worry darling, that stubborn cat will be waiting for me on our meeting place. You of all people should know I can handle myself. I know what I’m dealing with Mari.” She tries to assure the two teenagers.

Gorilla sends Adrien an impatient look. The blond sighs and looks at the older woman again. “Are you sure Mme. Tikki? I mean, it’s alright with me if you join us.”

“I’ll be fine, and where I’m going to is only a few walks away,” she then looks at her wristwatch before making a tsk-ing noise and shuffling her umbrella to her other hand. “Well then, I must go now, bye!”

“Alright, bye Tikki!” The two of them reply and the older woman watches as the car disappears in to the fog and rain.

It doesn’t take TIkki long before she arrives at her destination. As she expected, the whole place is littered with police and investigators. She turns her head away as she sees the scene of crime. She is still mourning her close friend and all of these are re-opening old wounds. It has been three days but still…

“Took ya long enough,” a familiar voice calls out to her from the alley. “You’re late!”

“Only by 10 minutes you alley cat,” she huffs. “Now let’s go talk to the police. We still owe Nooroo after all Plagg.”

Plagg comes out from the alley with a grin before joining Tikki under the umbrella and making their way to the police. It is about time they seek justice for what happened to Nooroo.

 

**Author's Note:**

> hiyaa this is my first time writing a fic for the mlb fandom lol. So this is a bit based on one of the episodes of thirTEEN terrors, i'll give you a hint on the upcoming chapters if you managed to guess which one it is. Don't be fooled with this chapter. Yes it will have character deaths. It's been written in the tags. Enjoy!


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